Interpretive Areas

Remains of Norse Buildings

A. This large hall was built for someone of high social
status. It contains a small private room and communal living and working
quarters for the rest of the crew. One of the rooms was littered with slag,
and may have been used for iron working. Jasper chips from fire-starters
show that the crew came from Iceland.

B. House—lower-status living quarters and a place for
roasting bog ore before smelting.

C. Hut—lowest-status housing at this site, serving
perhaps as quarters for several slaves.

D. The smallest of the three halls, probably built for
a crew of labourers. Judging by the jasper chips aroudn the fire, they were
from Iceland. This hall contains a large storeroom, possibly for furs and
perishable items. Another room was littered with woodworking debris, both
inside and out.

E. Hut—probably used by women as a workshop, and
perhaps as living quarters. Stone weights inside may have been part of a
loom.

F. Leader’s hall—This is the largest building,
twice the size of Eirik the Red’s home in Greenland, and equivalent in
size to a chieftain’s hall in Iceland. The leader of the expedition
probably lived in this hall with his crew. Jasper chips show that its
inhabitants came from Greenland. It contained a private room for the leaders,
a large central room that could serve as a banquet hall, two large storage
rooms, and a lean-to shed for boat repair.

G. Hut—workshop and living space for lower-status crew.

J. Smelting hut—this small isolated building contained
a furnace for producing iron from bog ore. A simple smelter stood in the
middle of the floor. A charcoal kiln was nearby. The amount and type of slag
found suggests that a single smelt took place. Very little iron was
manufactured, only enough for making about 100 to 200 nails.